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South Holland Man Gets Nearly 17 Years For Illegal Gun Deals

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CHICAGO (STMW) — A south suburban man has been sentenced to nearly 17 years in federal prison for illegally trafficking hundreds of guns from Indiana to Chicago.

David “Big Dave” Lewisbey , 24, of South Holland was sentenced to 200 months in prison Wednesday, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s office.

A federal jury took just 3½ hours to convict Lewisbey of dealing firearms without a federal license, two counts of illegally transporting firearms across state lines, and two counts of interstate travel to sell guns without a license last September.

“This case is a perfect example of where the guns come from … and into the hands of gangbangers who then shoot them and kill and wound people,” U.S. District Judge Ronald Guzman said before imposing the sentence, according to the statement.

Between January 2008 and September 2012, Lewisbey — who had no criminal record that disqualified him from buying firearms — traveled to gun shows in Indiana and bought duffle bags full of guns that he brought to Chicago, according to prosecutors.

A witness testified that he saw Lewisbey buy more than 100 firearms, including dozens of high-capacity magazines, at Indiana gun shows.

According to prosecutors, Lewisbey “flooded the streets of Chicago” with 43 illegal guns in a single weekend in 2012. He delivered the guns to co-defendant Levaine Tanksley, who along with two other suspects, sold them to someone cooperating with ATF agents. All of those guns were recovered by authorities.

Tanksley, 29, was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison, according to prosecutors; while Charles Lemle, 28, was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Michael Hall, 29, who cooperated with the governmement and testified against Lewisbey, is awaiting trial. All three pleaded guilty to illegally possessing firearms as previously convicted felon.

A body was discovered Sunday in the search-and-recovery mission for a west suburban woman who went missing off a northwest Indiana beach after she and two other swimmers got caught in a rip current Friday evening.

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